By bringing a diversity of governmental agencies into one room, we hope that attendees will learn what each agency does.

SPRINGFIELD — Comedian and civil rights activist Dick Gregory, Jacqueline Berrien, chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and Charles Ogletree, of Harvard Law School, are among the participants listed to take part in the Northeast Regional Fair Housing and Civil Rights Conference scheduled April 10 and 11 at the Springfield Marriott.

According to a release, the conference, organized by two state organizations, as well as the nonprofit HAPHousing, in addition to other collaborators, will both commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, that forbids "discrimination on the basis of sex, as well as race in hiring, promoting, and firing," as well as address areas where inequalities remain. The act also created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to implement the law, that was signed by President Lyndon Johnson on July 2, 1964.

Other organizers include the Massachusetts Fair Housing Center, and the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, who worked with similar agencies in New England and New York, to create what is described as an "educational opportunity to learn, share information and network. “

According to a release, topics to be explore include fair housing, promoting safe and inclusive schools, health care inequities, and signs of human trafficking in a community.
Other speakers scheduled include:

United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz, District of Massachusetts

Dr. Rodney Hood, author and civil rights activist

Lawrence “Larry” Watson, of Boston’s Berklee School Music.

During a plenary session on April 10, Ogletree, Hood, Amilcar Shabazz, of the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and Gregory will discuss the “Future of Civil Rights”.

“We are excited about not only recognizing the 50th anniversary of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, but also making positive contributions to the dialogue that will shape the future of civil rights in this country,” said Jamie Williamson, chair of the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, in the release.

"By bringing a diversity of governmental agencies into one room, we hope that attendees will learn what each agency does and to give them access to their experts. Together, the collective voice of many agencies and individuals will offer organizations the needed training that will increase performance and diversify perspective in a changing.”

The Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination is the state's chief civil rights agency.